Month: February 2017

.com | Morocco looks to new markets to boost stagnant tourism

Morocco’s key tourism sector barely grew last year amid security challenges, but operators are hoping Chinese and Russian visitors will boost their fortunes in the coming years. While political turmoil and jihadist attacks have battered the sector in Egypt and Tunisia, Morocco registered 10 million visitors last year, according to the Moroccan Tourism Observatory.

Hope diver Jean Luc Miralda earns first trip to nationals

The final season for Hope College diver Jean Luc Miralda will finish with him competing against the nation’s best. The senior from Tegucigalpa, Honduras earned a trip to next month’s NCAA Division III Championship in Woodlands, Texas, by qualifying out of this weekend’s regional at Calvin College.

Duped into killing Kim? 2 suspects say it looked like prank

This file image provided by Star TV of closed circuit television footage from Feb. 13, 2017, shows Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong, left, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Malaysia, who police say was arrested in connection with the death of Kim Jong Nam, the half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Two women – Doan and an Indonesian – have been arrested for allegedly coating their hands with the immensely toxic chemical agent VX and wiping them on the face of Kim Jong Nam at the airport.

Ilham Aliyev, First VP Mehriban Aliyeva taking part in march on 25th anniversary of Khojaly genocide

News selected on topics and regions – oil and gas, business, politics, IT, the South Caucasus, the Caspian Sea region, Central Asia Ranking of the Azerbaijani banking sector A march on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide is underway in Baku. President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva are participating at the event.

Armenia breaks ceasefire with Azerbaijan 117 times in 24 hours

News selected on topics and regions – oil and gas, business, politics, IT, the South Caucasus, the Caspian Sea region, Central Asia Ranking of the Azerbaijani banking sector Over the past 24 hours, Armenia’s armed forces have 117 times violated the ceasefire in various directions along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry told Trend Feb. 26. The Azerbaijani army positions located in the Bala Jafarli, Ashagi Askipara, Farakhli, Kemerli villages and on nameless heights of Azerbaijan’s Gazakh district, Aghdam village and on nameless heights of Tovuz district, as well as Garaveliler village of Gadabay district underwent fire from the Armenian army positions located in the Paravakar, Vazashen villages of Ijevan district, the Voskepar, Shavarshavan, Dovekh villages and on nameless heights of the Noyemberyan, Mosesgekh, Chinari, Berd … (more)

Family of Malcolm Naden’s victims slam Channel Nine

‘He glorified every part, every piece he cut off her’: Distraught family of Lateesha Nolan murdered by cousin Malcolm Naden call on Channel Nine to pull TV special about his confession The family of Lateesha Nolan – who was strangled to death, dismembered and then buried next to a river by her cousin Malcolm Naden – have called on Channel Nine to cancel a television special about his horrific confessions. The 24-year-old mother-of-four was murdered in January 2005 on the banks of Macquarie River, just south of Dubbo, in regional NSW, at the hands of Naden.

Sewage spill in Tijuana, Mexico flows north of border

Driver arrested after plowing truck into New Orleans Mardi Gras parade leaving 28 injured and 5 critical – including young children OJ Simpson has good chance of being released on parole as early as OCTOBER and will be able cash in on a $2.7 MILLION NFL pension ‘I do not take this lightly’: Meryl Streep blasts Karl Lagerfeld for ‘lying and defaming’ her after claiming she demanded money to wear Chanel Oscar dress Sense of humor failure? Trump is ridiculed with memes after PULLING OUT of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in shocking break with tradition – as his war with the media heats up Ivanka boycott spreads to Canada: Female protesters dressed as Donald march on major department store in bid to get it to drop her fashion line First planned contact between North Korea and the U.S. in Trump administration is CANCELLED after top envoy is denied US visa Trump spends the evening with … (more)

Alan Titchmarsh: ‘I hoped I wasn’t going to die’

It was the moment Alan Titchmarsh – Britain’s favourite gardener, best known for his calm and unflappable manner – admits he felt “very frightened”. “I hoped I wasn’t going to die, and I was hanging on in there but the pain was so acute at one point I thought it might be a blessed relief,” he says.

Why N. Korea may have used VX to kill leader’s half brother

SEOUL, South Korea>> Was it a poorly executed assassination or did North Korea want to showcase its stockpile of banned chemical weapons? The use of the highly toxic VX warfare agent to kill the estranged half brother of North Korea’s leader has raised questions about Pyongyang’s real motives in one of the strangest killings the world has seen. Some say North Korea, in allegedly bringing a U.N.-classified weapon of mass destruction to kill a man at a busy international airport, intended to show the world what it can do with chemical weapons, which are easily forgotten amid concerns about the country’s advancing nuclear missile technologies.

Exercise Operation Skyfall on November 15th

Falklands : Exercise Operation Skyfall on November 15th Submitted by Falkland Islands News Network 10.11.2016 Exercise Operation Skyfall on November 15th The Falkland Islands Government would like to make the public aware that between 0800 hrs on Tuesday 15th November, and 2359 hrs on Thursday 17th November, an exercise will be carried out throughout Stanley. The exercise will be started off with the sound of a big bang, and there will be limited access to some areas in Stanley, including FIGAS and the firing range.

Not pretty, but enough

Impact: Tamworth export Paddy Ryan crashes into the Western Force defence as NSW recorded a 19-13 win on Saturday night. Photo: Getty Images There was greater substance in the result for NSW Waratahs in a determined 19-13 home win against Western Force to open their Super Rugby season.

[MWC] What to expect at Mobile World Congress 2017

IT and communications industry officials walk around to register for the Mobile World Congress 2017 at the Fira Gran Via Exhibition Center in Barcelona, Spain, on Sunday. BARCELONA — With the theme of “The next element,” Mobile World Congress 2017 kicks off Monday, with around 2,200 tech firms showcasing their new devices and technologies.

Key developments in Kim’s assassination investigation

A Malaysian police officer guards the gate of the National Forensic Institute at Kuala Lumpur Hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017. Malaysian police ordered a sweep of Kuala Lumpur airport for toxic chemicals and other hazardous substances following the killing of Kim Jong Nam.

Rwanda: How the Rwanda-India Entrepreneurship Deal Is a Game Changer

Earlier this week, top Rwandan and Indian officials signed three bilateral agreements including a Memorandum of Understanding on establishing the Entrepreneurship Development Centre , in Rwanda. The MoU signed by Franois Kanimba, Minister for Trade, Industry and East African Community Affairs and Amar Sinha, External Relations Secretary in India’s Ministry of External Affairs remains in effect for three years before it is renewed – by mutual consent.

More information

Kristine Stiphany uses digital technologies to draw social parameters into the design and construction of infrastructure in the urban Global South. Undertaken in collaboration with residents of Brazilian informal settlements, her current study privileges situated data for revealing how people shape housing systems in evolution, and the political implications for doing so.

Nunes rejects GOP calls for special prosecutor into Russian ties

Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Tulare, chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, rejected calls from his fellow Republican for a special prosecutor to investigate purported ties between Russia and members of President Trump’s administration and campaign. Earlier Saturday, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista , the former House Oversight and Government Reform Committee chair, said it would be inappropriate for Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was involved with the Trump campaign and is a Trump appointee, to investigate the matter.

Northeast Arkansas’ ‘Grandfather of Aviation’ Dies at 88

Nicola Vaccari may have been born and raised in Italy, trained with NATO in Canada and spent time parking celebrities’ cars in Beverly Hills, but for more than 50 years the man known as Northeast Arkansas’ “Grandfather of Aviation” made his home in Walnut Ridge. Vaccari, who passed away Feb. 10 at the age of 88, began his aviation career as a member of the Italian Air Force.

Korea to conclude land acquisition for THAAD battery this week

South Korea is expected to conclude the land acquisition for the US advanced missile defense system this week with actual deployment to be completed by late June at the earliest, the military said Sunday. The defense ministry said administrative measures to take over the Seongju golf club owned by retail giant Lotte Group will be completed soon.

FM Yun to raise voice against N. Korea’s human rights, chemical weapons issues

South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will attend international conferences this week to speak out against North Korea’s human rights abuses and shed light on Pyongyang’s use of chemical weapons, government officials said Sunday. Yun plans to visit Geneva on Monday and Tuesday to attend a session of the UN Human Rights Council and the Conference on Disarmament, Seoul’s foreign ministry said.

Failure to launch foundation on NK human rights to enter sixth month

South Korea has yet to launch a foundation to support civic groups’ activities that aim to improve North Korea’s human rights situation even though a relevant law took effect six months ago, government officials said Sunday. The law aimed at improving North Korea’s dismal human rights situation came into force in September 2016, but the foundation has failed to start work as the main opposition party is delaying recommending candidates for board members, sources said.

S. Korea, US moving to use latest detection gear to counter NK chemical biological threats

South Korea and the United States are moving to employ their latest detection equipment to prepare for North Korean chemical and biological weapons in the joint military drill planned for this year, sources said Sunday. The move is in response to Pyongyang being accused of using the lethal VX nerve agent to kill Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, at a crowded airport in Malaysia on Feb. 13. The allies have been conducting the Able Response chemical and biological warfare exercise every year for the past six years.

Thief helps man, 88, up stairs before pinching his wallet

CCTV released by police in Prague, Czech Republic, shows younger man offered a helping hand to an 88-year-old who was struggling to climb the stairs to his flat This is the moment a CCTV camera caught a ‘Good Samaritan’ stealing from an old man after helping him up a flight of stairs. The footage, captured in Prague, the Czech capital, shows the younger man helping an 88-year-old man up the stairs of his block of flats after being out for a stroll.

Korea’s troop level under volunteer syst…

South Korea’s troop level would hover around 150,000-200,000 if the country abandons its conscription system for a volunteer force, a state-run think tank said Sunday. The findings by the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses based on an assessment of other countries that maintain a volunteer military showed on average that 0.4 percent of the population serves in the armed forces, which is roughly half of the number for places that rely on mandatory conscription.

Dramatic photos show asylum seekers crossing into Canada

Heartbreaking photos show asylum seekers flooding into Canada from the US across unmanned borders every day amid fears of Trump’s crackdown on immigration As of February 13, some 3,800 people had made an asylum claim in 2017, up from the same period last year Heartbreaking photos show asylum seekers flooding into Canada across unmanned borders every day from the United States amid fears of a Donald Trump presidency. The number of asylum seekers crossing into Canada at isolated and unguarded border crossings has increased in recent weeks as many believe Trump will start expelling illegal immigrants.

Meghan Markle hoped to join Prince Harry on charity trek

Sense of humor failure? Trump is ridiculed with memes after PULLING OUT of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in shocking break with tradition – as his war with the media heats up Husband shoots his school teacher wife and her new lesbian lover dead before turning the gun on himself in horrific double murder-suicide shootout ‘This administration is abhorrent’: Casey Affleck blasts Trump as ‘un-American’ during Best Actor acceptance speech at the Independent Spirit Awards Pope cuts penalties for paedophile priests – including one let off with just a lifetime of prayer for abusing five young boys Food blogger is busted for cheating in half marathon by eagle-eyed viewer who spotted the WRONG distance on her GPS watch – as she is forced to confess taking shortcut AND using a BIKE Bill Maher defends giving Milo Yiannopoulos a platform on his show just days before a video emerged of the … (more)

Penguin surprise all with super size win

The battle for fourth spot on the Dannebrog Premier League ladder looks over with the two participants Penguin and Devonport vying for the position having played each other on Saturday. FOCUS: Adrian Steers of Spreyton in the Bowls North-West pennant Premier League match between Spreyton and Ulverstone.

Kurdish reporter Shifa Gardi killed in Iraq

A reporter and anchor for an Iraqi Kurdish TV station was killed Saturday while working on the front lines as Iraqi forces battle ISIS for the city of Mosul. Shifa Gardi, 30, a beloved journalist in a male-dominated profession, died in a roadside bomb blast that also injured her cameraman, Younis Mustafa, according to her employer, Rudaw.

Russia to modernize five military airfields

Moscow, Feb 26 – Russia will upgrade five military airports in the country’s southwest and the Far East in the coming three years, Russian Aerospace Forces Commander Viktor Bondarev said. We plan to conduct research this year and start to renovate the Ukrainka airfield in the Amur region next year, Bondarev was quoted by Xinhua news agency as saying on Saturday.

Photo illustration by Sarah Rogers/The Daily BeastIsraeli AK-47s To…

An Israeli company with close connections to the country’s elite special forces has been licensed by Russia to produce assault rifles in America. KIRYAT GAT, Israel-On a balmy Friday afternoon last fall outside Tel Aviv, at a high-end restaurant overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, the individuals responsible for bringing one of the world’s best-known brands into the 21st century were seated enjoying the calamari salads and red wine.

The Rio Carnival Masterpiece Heist

In 2006, thieves took advantage of the bustle of the Rio Carnival, stealing five major works of art from a museum and ending up on the FBI’s Top Ten Art Crimes list. As anyone who has ever watched a good art heist flick knows, the key is in the planning.